The habits of turtledoves

Adult turtledoves build nests in trees and lay white eggs in nests woven with branches. It takes 18 days for the chicks to hatch, and the young birds will be full-winged after 19 days. This kind of bird is not on guard against humans and is often found around human settlements.

Turtledoves are social species and form considerable communities in places where food is abundant, such as cereals. The cry of the turtledove is "goo-goo". The second sound is heavier and repeated many times. It got this scientific name because it sounded like the Greek word eighteen. Occasionally it emits a huge, harsh and hollow call for about two seconds, especially when landing in the summer.

Grey turtledoves and pink-headed turtledoves have been proved to be the wild ancestors of domestic ring pigeons. One reason is that the bird can mate and breed with ring pigeons.

Turtledoves inhabit forests in plains, foothills and low mountains and hills, and often occur near farmland, arable land, orchards, thickets, towns and villages.

The breeding period of turtledove is from April to August. Maybe two litters a year. They usually nest in small trees or bushes, as well as in houses and garden fruit trees. The nest is very simple and crude, mainly made up of withered branches. The height from the ground is more than 3 meters, the outer diameter of the nest is 14 cm 20 cm and the inner diameter is 8 cm 13 cm. Each litter lays 2 eggs, the color of the eggs is milky white and the shape is oval. The size of the egg is 29 ~ 34 × 23 ~ 26 cm and weighs 7 × 9 grams. The eggs are mainly hatched by females. Most male birds rest and keep watch near their nests. The incubation period is 14-16 days. The nestling is late in life. After hatching, the chicks are fed together by both male and female parents. After about 15-17 days of feeding, the chicks can fly out of the nest.